EXCLUSIVE: Meet Germany's latest wunderkind aiming to build on Vettel's F1 legacy

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EXCLUSIVE: Meet Germany's latest wunderkind aiming to build on Vettel's F1 legacy

Red Bull has backed one German driver to the top and are looking to do it again

Jim Kimberley

Thursday 18 April 2024 02:00

Red Bull’s F1 team and Germany have an incredible history together after the team powered Sebastian Vettel to four consecutive double world championships between 2010 and 2013.

The German and Austrian national anthems played alongside each other dozens of times on the Formula 1 podium, including the nine-race winning streak that capped Vettel’s final title.

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Now the team have a new hopeful looking to repeat those Austro-German triumphs in the form of F3 teenager Ollie Goethe, Red Bull’s recent signing to their young driver pipeline, the Red Bull Junior Team.

His ambition is clear: to reach Formula 1 and emulate the success of other F1 legends that race under the German flag.

German success

"That's definitely the goal. To be honest, I'm just focused on maximising every race. But yes, his career was the path that I'm aiming for.

"So yes, that's the goal."

I note how very Vettel-like this answer is and get greeted with a wry smile and a knowing "Exactly" fired back — you get the impression this teenager knows how far the path he's walking can go.

Twelve months prior to speaking, Goethe was a Euroformula champion, he's now a Red Bull recruit, so where will he be in 12 months' time from our interview at the end of the 2023 season?

"It's impossible to say, really, where I'll be in 12 months," Goethe states. "I am in Abu Dhabi at the moment, and I've been seeing some drivers maybe a year or two older than me already getting their first laps in F1.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't really jealous about that and would love to be in their position this time next year, getting some laps in a Formula 1 car."

He waits for a beat, considering the upcoming year, before concluding, "And definitely fighting for the championship."

Goethe moved from Trident to Campos for the 2024 season alongside Juan Pablo Montoya’s son Sebastián Montoya and Spaniard Mari Boya.

Red Bull Formula 1 McLaren Sebastian Vettel